Means for supporting magnetic structures



June 9, 1931. L. L. JONES 1,808,778

MEANS FOR SUPPORTING MAGNETIC STRUCTURES Filed Feb. 11, 1927 1 1 .1? ffi fi l INVENTOR LesTer- L.Jones Patented June 9, 1931 FFICE 1 LESTER L.ONES, ORADELL, NEW JERSEY MEANS I0B SUPPORTING MAGNETIC STRUCTURESApplication 111m February 11, 1927. Serial no;'1e7,s72.

This invention relates to improvements in means for supporting magneticstructures, and relates more particularly to 'improvements in the meansfor supporting in- 5) ductors, relay magnets and like structures.

In the construction of inductors, magnets or other laniinated magneticbodies or systerns especially for use with alternating currents, it hasalways been a diflicult problem to support the laminations in such a wayas to minimize the eddy current losses due to the stray fields cuttingthe supporting structure. Various expedients, such as seetionalizing andinsulating the .metal paths where these link the main or stray fields,or

of making the supporting structure of nonmagnetic material havin ahigh'specific resistance, have been use in the past with more or lesssuccess.

My present invention resides in an improved method and the meanstherefor of supporting magnetic structures having relatively largeleakage wherein the complexity of the supporting members is greatlyreduced, the eddy current-losses due to the stray fields cutting thesupporting structure I are effectively inhibitedand the necessityofhaving supporting materials of high specific resistance is greatlyminimized. The invention relates more part'cularly to the provision ofmagnetic systems in which the supporting apparatus comprises asugporting bar or plate having an area su cient to. give rise tothe-generation of appreciable eddy currents if the element be out bylines 'of flux, this supporting bar or plate being placed in the, medianplane of the magnetic structure and arranged parallel to the plane inwhich the magnetic lines of 40 force flow. In magnets of the laminated 1type this involves dividing the laminations into two substantially equalsections and placing the supporting member between such sections oflaminations. The laminationsmay be bolted or riveted to this centralsupporting member. By thus arranging the supporting member in the medlanplane of the laminated structure and parallel to the plane in which themagnetic lines of force flow, I accomplish the very important results ofeliminating any supportingstructure which would link with the magneticlines of force, which linkage would produce undesirable eddy currentlosses in the supporting structure and of further eliminating anymetallic bodies from either side of the magnetic structure where suchmetallic bodies would lie in and intersect flux or leakage paths, whichalso produces undesirable eddy current losses. There is involved, ofcourse, a small reduction of useful iron cross-section where thesupporting member passes through the magnetizing coil of the magneticsystem, but the loss due to the additional copper required for thispurpose is negligible as compared with the eddy current losses whichwould otherwise occur in the supporting apparatus.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other objects as willhereinafter appear, my invention consists in the elements and'theirrelation one to the other as hereinafter more particularly described andsought to be defined in the claims; reference being had to theaccompanying drawings which show the preferred embodiments of myinvention, and in which:

Fig. 1 shows an embodiment of my invention applied to an enginecarriedinductor. for train control purposes, of which:

' Fig. 1a is a front elevational view of such inductor with parts shownin section and Fig. 1b is a view taken in cross-section on the, line6-?) of Fig. 1a; and

Fig 2 shows another embodiment of the invention applied to analternating current relay, of which:

Fig. 2a is a front elevational view of the relay with parts broken away,and

Fig. 2b is a view thereof taken in crosssecti'on on the line bb of Fig.2a, and

Fig. 2c is a view taken in cross-section on the line 00 of Fig. 2a.

Referring now more in detail to the drawings,land having reference firstto Figs. 1a. and 16 thereof, I show my invention applied to a traincontrol system and particularly" to an engine carriehiriductor of aninduction type of train control system. This inductor comprises a mainmagnetizing core netizing core, as indicated by the dotted lines 13 and14 representing the terminal edges of the core laminations, the poleshoes being made separate from the core so that the magnetizing coil 15of the inductor may be wound on a molded insulating form such as 16which can be slipped over the magnetizing core 10.

For supporting the magnetic structure of the inductor, the laminationsof the core and pole pieces are separated or divided into substantiallytwo equal sections such as indicated, 1Ua and 10b, and a, central bar 17of non-magnetic material is inserted between the sections oflaminations. This central bar is preferably of a tough and strong metalsuch as aluminum bronze. The

' laminations may then be bolted to this central bar by means of the twoseries of bolts such as 18 and 19. For supporting the entire inductor ina casing or the like or for supporting the same to anypart of the ve-.hicle on which the inductor is to be mount ed, the central supportingbar 17 is pro- .vided with projecting portions 17a and 17 b at theopposite ends thereof, these portions projecting beyond the ends of thecore 10, and said sections 17a and 1712 are provided with holes orapertures 20, 20 for receiving suitable supporting or securing elements.

porting bar 17 lies,

By means of this construction it will now be seen that all supportingparts on opposite sides of the laminations such as the core sections 10aand 10?) are eliminated so that no supporting parts are introduced inthe flux or leakage paths of the inductor, and so thatno supportingstructure is used which ,links with the main magnetic flux of theinductor. As will be understood by those skilled in the art,substantially no flux crosses the median plane in which the supand alleddy current loss 1nc1dent to the use of the former supportingstructures is therefore eliminated.

In Fig. 2, show another embodiment of the lnvention applied to analternating current .relay.. This relay comprises a U- shaped core 21having a magnetizing coil contact 24: cooperating with 22 around one legof the core, the said core and coil cooperating with an armaturegenerally designated as 23 havin' a movable xed contact elements 25. Forsupporting the relay structure, the core 21 is divided into two sections21a and 21b, and a supporting plate 26 1s introduced between thesesections, the

- said. core sections being secured as by the bolts 27,127 to thesupporting plate 26. In thls case the central supporting plate isdivided into two parts so as tofacilitate the formation of symmetricalflanges for the support of the relay and for the support of theinsulating panel 28 carrying the con-.

tacts 25 as shown in the drawings. The supporting plate or plates 26 maybe secured as by means of the bolts 29, 29 to any part of the relaycasing.

The laminations of the armature 23 are also preferably divided into twosections The armature supporting plate 30 may be secured to a U-shapedbracket element31 journalled in a pivot pin 32 forming part of the pivotstructure 33 which may be secured to a projecting portion 3 1 of thecentral supporting plate 26 of the core. The contact member 24 isfastened to the supporting plate 30; and the laminations 23a and 23?;are preferably so contoured, as shown in Fig. 2a of the drawings, as toreduce the weight to a minimum while efficiently providing for amagneticflux path. The supporting bar 30 may be made of metal where greatstrength is desired, or it may be of insulating material where highinsulation of the movable contact from the magnetic structure isdesired.

It will be apparent that the results attained for the relay structuresupport are substantially the same as those obtained for the support ofthe inductor body heretofore described in connection with Figs. la and1b.

The manner of making and using my apparatus embodying the principles ofmy present invention and the numerous advantages obtained thereby willin the main be fully apparent from the above detailed descriptionthereof. It will be further apparent that while I have shown anddescribed the preferred forms of my invention, that numerous changes andmodifications may be made in the structure disclosed without departingfrom the spirit of the invention, defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A magnetic structure comprising a laminated body and a supportingelement therefor, said supporting element having an area sufiicient togive rise to the generation of appreciable eddy currents if the elementbe cut by lines of flux, the laminations of said body being divided intotwo sections and said supporting element being arranged ing elementbeing arranged in a substaninated body, said supportingelement having anarea sufiicient to give rise to the generation of appreciable eddycurrents if the element be cut by lines of flux, the laminations of saidbody being divided into two substantially equal sections and saidsupporttially median plane between said sections of laminations and in aplane parallelto the plane in which the magnetic lines of fluxfiow'whereby the flux or leakage paths of said laminated body do not cutor link with the supporting element.

3. A magnetic structure comprising a laminated body having oppositepoles and a supporting platetherefor, said supporting plate having anarea suflicient to give rise to the generation of appreciable eddycurrents if the plate bp cut by lines of flux, the laminations of saidbody being divided into two substantially equal sections and saidsupporting plate being arranged to lie in a- 1 median plane betweensaidv sections of laminations and in a plane parallel to the plane inwhich the magnetic lines of flux flow" whereby the fiuxor leakage pathsof said laminated body do not cut or link with the supporting element,and means joining said sections to said plate, the said supporting plateincluding parts securable to a support. 4:. An inductor for traincontrol systems or the like comprising a magnetic structure having alaminated core and a supporting element therefor, said supporting"element having an area sufficient to; give rise to the generation ofappreciable eddy currents if the element be cut by lines of flux, thelaminationsof said core being divided into two sections and saidsupporting element being arranged in a plane between said sections oflaminations whereby the flux or leakage paths of said laminated core donot out or link with the supporting element y 5. An inductor for traincontrol systems or the like comprising a magnetic structure having acoil, a laminated core having polarregions and a flat extendedsupporting element therefor, said supporting element having'an areasufiicient to give rise 7 to the generation of appreciable eddy ourrentsif the element be cut by lines of flux the laminations of said core.being divided into two substantially equal sections and said supportingelement being arranged in a substantially median plane between saidsections of laminations and in a plane parallel to the plane in whichthe magnetic lines of flux flow whereby the flux or leakage paths ofsaid laminated core'do not cutor link with the supporting element,

Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New,York,this 8th dayfof February, A. D. 1927.

LESTER L. JONES.

